


the love on your wrist.

by bernlambda



Category: Hololive, Virtual Streamer Animated Characters
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-18 23:02:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29616795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bernlambda/pseuds/bernlambda
Summary: Uruha Rushia didn't have a pulse on her left wrist.
Relationships: Houshou Marine/Uruha Rushia
Comments: 15
Kudos: 101





	the love on your wrist.

Uruha Rushia didn't have a pulse on her left wrist.

The first time she had learned about soulmates, centuries ago, she was only young. She had overheard some of her classmates talking about it rather noisily - Rushia never usually cared about what her classmates were saying, but this topic caught her interest immediately. They were speaking about how your left wrist pulsed to a different rhythm, and that it was supposedly the heartbeat of your soulmate. Rushia didn't wholly believe it, but the thought stuck in her mind for the rest of the day, clinging to her like some of the more needy spirits she worked with.

That evening, alone in her room, the student necromancer decided to test out the theory that had been bugging her the past few hours. Sitting cross legged on her soft bed, she sighed and gently pressed her index and middle finger to the inside of her left wrist. She wasn't sure what to expect, half believing it to beat to the rhythm of her own pulse, half hoping to feel an unfamiliar, warm thrum.

Instead, she felt absolutely nothing.

Her mouth grew dry, and she trembled slightly as she pressed her fingers down harder; maybe it was just faint, right? More and more she pressed down, harder and harder, almost hard enough to bruise. She pressed down enough that her budding necromancy powers could actually feel the life running through her veins. And yet, there was still no pulse.

Rushia didn't know what to think. What did this mean? That she didn't have a soulmate of her own? Her hands clenched tightly together as she sat motionless on her bed, trying so hard to even her breathing. Did this mean she was alone? That she had no one? Her shoulders began to shake as she could feel a sob rising in her throat. No, that couldn't be true... could it?

She didn't want to cry, she couldn't let herself. So instead, she screamed. As loud as she possibly could. She screamed so hard her throat burned; it burned with all the overwhelming emotions she felt at that moment - the anger, the confusion, the raw and searingly painful sorrow she felt. Her heart wracked against her chest as her breath ran dry, and she cursed the organ with every fibre of her being, slamming her fist down against her knee as her tears finally began to spill.

It was at that very moment Uruha Rushia realised she was truly alone.

For the rest of her time at the Academy, Rushia kept to herself. She was already pretty bad at communication, but after that day she had lost all motivation to form any real connections with people - it helped her come to terms with the fact that she was really alone. She had accepted her truth, and surrounded herself with her necromancy studies and the spirits of the damned. She was fine. She didn't need anything more than that.

When night fell, however, she would feel her chest ache with an unwavering longing she couldn't push down, bubbling up from her heart and consuming her whole being. Sometimes, she would allow herself to imagine a warm body pressed flush against her back, gentle arms surrounding her, holding her closely, lovingly. Without fail, it would always cause a small spark of hope to ignite within her. What if she was wrong last time? What if there really _was_ someone for her? She would hesitantly press her fingers against her inner wrist as she had time and time before, and time and time again she would feel nothing but tender skin against the pads of her fingers. The warm feeling enveloping her would vanish with that, leaving her cold and alone once more. Falling asleep would always be hard afterwards.

Rushia threw herself into her studies as a distraction, resurrecting body after body, soul after soul. Whereas before her grades were pretty average, now she was almost top of every class she was in. It felt good of course, but it was always a hollow victory. It seemed like every time she would succeed with something, feeling proud of herself and her abilities, her left wrist would ache softly, a looming reminder that she would never have someone to share her these moments with - that she would never have someone to softly kiss her lips and say how proud they were of her.

It was close to her graduation when Rushia learned that some people pursued relationships with people other than their soulmate.

Sure, they would never last, and were mainly done for fun before people met their other half and settled down, but Rushia had spent the last few years isolating herself, painfully touch-starved. Even if it was brief, maybe she _could_ have someone hold her close and kiss her softly.

And so, during her last few months at the Academy, she was either studying for finals or in the dorm room of a fellow student. Sure, the relationships they usually wanted were mainly physical, but Rushia would take what she could get. As long as they were gentle with her, and the illusion of love was there, she could allow herself to melt into their touch and lose herself in the feeling of another person. It was a complete farce, and Rushia always knew that she would be lonely and cold again once they had had their fun, but in the moment she allowed herself to drink in every caress, every kiss.

Sometimes whoever she was with would talk about their soulmate afterwards, holding their left wrist against their chest. Rushia would mentally check out whenever this happened, giving noncommittal hums or nods that didn't really mean anything. Whatever they said, it would make her own wrist ache with longing, and a bitterness that would make her leave soon after. No one ever pulled her back, or even asked if she was okay. They just said goodbye, and that was that. It was over, and Rushia was back to being alone once more.

Rushia ended up passing all of her exams perfectly, and all of a sudden found herself real necromancer, no longer just a student. With how well she did at the academy, she was offered multiple good placements at various magic institutes. Many of her classmates eyed her with jealousy, but she didn't care. She picked the institute furthest away from the academy, and hoped that she would never have to see that place again.

And she didn't have to; for the next couple of centuries, Rushia worked diligently amongst many powerful sorcerers. The place she chose was pretty remote - a gorgeous tower overlooking the crystalline ocean that marked the crossing point of the demonic realm to the world of humans. She was lucky enough to have her personal room face the sea, and she would spend hours upon hours watching its glittering, ethereal waves. Her loneliness still ate away at her, but she found herself dealing with it much easier than when she was at the Academy.

Her bed was still far too big and far too cold, but her coworkers respected her, and the spirits that surrounded her were friendly. Things were surprisingly okay.

Uruha Rushia had finally come to terms with the fact that she was alone.

The green haired necromancer genuinely enjoyed her life at the Institute; she was exceptionally good at what she did, almost all of her resurrections going off without a hitch, and she enjoyed the work, too. She couldn't help but feel happy when she gave someone a second chance at a life that had once been unfairly stolen from them, and as she watched the ferry bring them back to the world of the living, she would smile and silently wish them the best. It was nice. She had a purpose. She was doing good.

The days passed gently like that; calm and enjoyable, just like the waves of the boundary ocean lapping against the shore. Rushia managed to make a couple of friends, and even got herself a promotion. Her new friends had taken her out to the town once she had told them the news, and Rushia felt a warmth then that she hadn't felt in many years. Sure, none of those friends would hold her and kiss her the way she so desperately craved, but maybe that was alright. At least she had people now.

However, soon would come a day that would change everything.

Rushia picked up her assignment that morning on the way back from breakfast, and it looked no different to any of her other ones. Just a life that had ended tragically early, a life she could give another chance. In her workroom, she pooled her energy together, and drew the specific soul from the ether to the middle of her magic circle. She reached her hand out to bind the soul to the circle so she could work, but when her fingers made contact with the soft, pulsating light, she drew back as if burned. This soul felt so much different to the thousands she had worked with before - even from the slight touch, she still felt their energy travelling through her. This was odd, but not unheard of - a lot of human souls had an immense amount of power; maybe this person was just very important.

Despite this, the soul's energy still flowed through her as she diligently worked around it. Rushia was very experienced by this point, yet she had never dealt with anything like this before, not in the thousand years she had lived. It felt like the soul was drawing her to them, and when she lost focus she actually did find herself drifting closer. Something was off about this, and Rushia desperately wanted to finish the ritual so she could speak to this person.

Night had fallen by the time she was ready to resurrect, and Rushia found herself hesitating. She was... nervous. She didn't know what to expect from whoever she was about to bring back. She took one final, deep breath, and then she sent all the magic she could muster into the soul, the circle around it lighting up a vibrant ruby red.

Rushia stepped back as a figure began to form from the light, going over the usual lines she would say to help them adjust in her head. They would probably be shocked to be alive again, so Rushia would have to calm them down first.

Then she would ask about why their energy was still flowing through her veins.

The white light exploded outwards, filling the room with a burst of life, and then faded revealing... a pirate?

She had beautiful red hair pulled into two small twintails, and an oversized coat hanging around her shoulders. Her eyes stood out to Rushia the most, though. One a deep red, much like her own, and the other a gorgeous shade of gold. Rushia couldn't help but stare for a moment, captivated by that bright colour.

She came back to herself after a moment, since the girl in front of her began to sway a little. _Of course,_ Rushia thought to herself, _she's just been resurrected, she's going to be a little shaky._ Rushia quickly pulled her over to a seat, and went to fix her a glass of water, glancing back at those eyes every so often. An unfamiliar voice, however, stopped her in her tracks.

"Are you... Uruha Rushia?"

Rushia stiffened, and had to quickly stop herself from dropping the glass she was holding. How did this girl know her name?

"How do you know my name?" Rushia spun around to face her, their gazes meeting for the first time, and as they did, Rushia felt her breath catch in her throat. The determination from behind the pirate's eyes was palpable. Rushia swallowed nervously.

All of a sudden, the red haired girl shot up from her seat. "Holy crap, I can't believe she was right!"

"H-huh?" Rushia prompted, confused. The pirate smiled widely.

"So, me and my crew were fighting a sea witch, right?" she spoke excitedly, so fast it was a little difficult for Rushia to keep up. "And she was one of those weird oracle ones, yeah? We originally went to find her to learn the location of some treasure or whatever, but she had other plans I guess...

"Anyway, we were fighting, and I was doing pretty good if I say so myself! Everyone knows Senchou is good with a sword, so I was getting a little cocky," she laughed. "I guess that was my downfall, because I ended up pinned to the floor with a knife to my throat." The stranger shrugged. "It was kind of hot, honestly."

Rushia narrowed her eyes in confusion, tilting her head. How could someone find imminent death sexy? This girl was odd to say the least...

"She started the typical villain monologue after that, so I kind of zoned out... those things get pretty boring after a while." The pirate waved her hand flippantly. "But she _did_ say something that caught my attention!"

The red haired girl suddenly made her way over to Rushia, grabbing her by the shoulders. Rushia automatically tried to recoil, but the pirate's hands were unusually warm against her skin, and despite being confused, the touch felt good enough that she didn't want to move away. She stared, shocked, into those gold and red eyes that seemed to be almost sparkling with an emotion she couldn't place, and the energy underneath her skin buzzed loudly.

"Rushia," she said, serious all of a sudden. "The witch told me she was doing me a favour - she told me that when I died, I would finally meet my soulmate."

Rushia froze hearing that word, an icy panic rising in her chest. She didn't want old wounds to be reopened by some random assignment!

"All my life," the red haired girl spoke, staring into Rushia's eyes with an intensity she'd never experienced before, "I thought I didn't have a soulmate. I thought I was alone. Everyone around me had that stupid pulse on their wrist, and I didn't even have my own."

Rushia's breath hitched, her left wrist throbbing erratically against her side. Or maybe it was something else? No, she couldn't even entertain that thought - she'd come to terms with things years ago. It was just an ache, nothing more.

"The witch told me I would be resurrected by someone called Uruha Rushia - you. And she told me you'd be my—"

"No!" Rushia shouted, her hands rushing up to cover the red haired girl's mouth, her chest heaving with panicked breaths. The pirate's eyes widened for a moment, before her hands slipped from Rushia's shoulders. She looked confused, and a little sad, but didn't make a move to keep speaking.

"I can't do this," Rushia said, tearing her eyes away from that beautiful red and gold combination. "It took me so, so long to deal with..." Rushia screwed her eyes shut, preventing the tears that were brimming in her eyes from falling. Her hands fell from the girls mouth, and she sighed.

"It took me so long to deal with being alone," Rushia forced out, turning away from the red haired girl. "A thousand years..." a shaky breath passed her lips, and she steeled herself. "A thousand years of loneliness - a thousand years of checking my wrist over and over, wishing I had someone, _anyone,_ to... to..." The necromancer clenched her fists, anger slowly growing from the centre of her chest, her heart rate getting faster and faster with every passing moment.

"Rushia," the pirate interjected, but Rushia wouldn't let her.

"You haven't even told me your name!" She all but screams, hyperventilating. "You show up and start telling me these things and—"

"Rushia!" the girl shouts, and Rushia turns around to realise she's holding her wrist tightly, staring at Rushia with worried eyes.

"You need to breathe," she says softly, and takes Rushia's hand, leading her to a seat gently. As she sits down, Rushia realises her hands are trembling under the warm touch of the other girl.

"First of all," she smiles softly, "It was rude of me to not introduce myself. I'm Houshou Marine, captain of the Houshou pirates." Rushia looks on a little confused as the girl, now known as Marine, does a strange little routine as she says her name and title. It's been obviously toned down for the serious situation, but the fact that she does it even now makes a small, tired giggle pass from Rushia's lips. Marine's face lights up a little at this, before she schools it back into a neutral expression.

"Second of all, your heart is hammering right now, Rushia. You need to calm down."

"How did you—" Rushia goes to ask, and then it hits her. Marine is holding her own wrist. Marine can feel her heartbeat. _Marine can feel her heartbeat._

"I'm really sorry for shocking you like this, Rushia," Marine smiles sadly. "I've just... I've been waiting so long for this moment." She takes Rushia's hand again, running her thumb over Rushia's dainty knuckles.

"As a soul, I could feel your heartbeat, even while I didn't have one." Marine giggled a little, and Rushia couldn't help but revel in that sound. "The whole time I was dead, you kept me sane."

Marine's smile was so pretty, and so, so sweet. It made Rushia's head feel fuzzy - everything was just so hard to take in. That entire time, there was no pulse against her wrist not because she didn't have a soulmate, but because her soulmate was _dead._ The thought swam around her head for a while, before she realised she could feel her wrist throbbing again.

Except, it wasn't throbbing. It was _Marine's heartbeat_ against her skin. And it seemed she felt just as nervous as Rushia did, judging by how fast it was.

The pair stared at each other for a while, not once looking away. Marine drew in a breath, about to say something else, but a giggle from Rushia stopped her in her tracks.

"I can't believe this," Rushia laughed, shaking her head in disbelief as tears began to pool in her eyes once more. "The only time I ever let myself even think about something like this was in dreams. I was so sure..."

"That it would never happen?" Marine prompted, and Rushia found herself earnestly smiling now.

"Yes!" She laughed once more, and this time Marine joined in, the pair laughing together under the glow of candlelight and soft moonlight. They giggled together for quite a while, almost as if thousands of years of emotions had just come tumbling to the surface, and this was the only way they could let it out. So many years of sadness, anger, yearning, and repressed hope was suddenly out in the open through the sweet, joyous laughter of the pair. Rushia knew her coworkers out in the hallway could probably hear them, but she didn't care one bit. This was the lightest she had felt in centuries.

"So," Marine said as their laughter finally died down, "What do you say?"

"To us?" Rushia asked.

"Yeah!" Marine smiled impossibly wide, and Rushia felt her heart skip a beat at the sight. She was certain Marine felt it, too.

"Well, It's not like I can refuse, right?" Rushia raised an eyebrow, blushing a little. "We're... we're soulmates after all."

Hearing this, Marine pulled Rushia into the warmest hug she had ever felt in her life. To Rushia, Marine's embrace felt like home already - maybe it was the years of loneliness catching up to her, or maybe this was just how people felt around their soulmate, but Rushia couldn't help but lean into the touch and snake her arms around Marine's waist. She smiled into the crook of her neck, hands coming to rest gently at her hips, and breathed in Marine's scent.

"It's nice to finally meet you," Rushia breathed.

They stood there for a while, just existing in each other's space. Marine slowly played with the hair at the nape of Rushia's neck, as Rushia mindlessly fiddled with the silky fabric of Marine's skirt. Her brain was buzzing with so many thoughts, so many possibilities, that she didn't even know where to start. Her soulmate was here, tangible and alive, and Rushia didn't know what she wanted to do first.

Well, there was one thing...

"Marine," Rushia drew back to look her soulmate _(her soulmate!)_ in the eyes. "Can I kiss you?"

"Yes," Marine smiled, and with that, Rushia leaned in.

The feelings she felt when their lips collided were almost indescribable with how good they felt. Rushia had kissed many people before, but it had never felt like this. Her lips melded against Marine's own like a puzzle with just two pieces, and she felt overwhelmingly whole. Every small movement Marine made against her lips was perfect, and when she ran her tongue over Rushia's lips, Rushia opened her mouth for the girl without a second thought.

Tasting Marine was like tasting heaven, Rushia thought hazily from the back of her mind, as their mouths moved together like clockwork. If Rushia held any doubts before now, they were gone within an instant - it seemed like every part of Marine was tailor made for her, and judging by the heart beat against her wrist, she guessed the sentiment was shared. Their kiss was slow and sweet, a thousand years of longing personified, and Rushia wanted to take as long as she could enjoying everything Marine had.

However, air was still a necessity, and they both pulled back to breathe, foreheads resting together. For a while, all they did was just breathe in each others' air, revelling in the brand new feeling of belonging they both felt.

"So," Marine smiled devilishly and winked. "Should we go somewhere private?"

Rushia rolled her eyes, blushing, and slapped Marine playfully on the shoulder. "At least buy me dinner first."

"Uh, Rushia, I don't know if you know this, but I was dead up until now. I have no money."

Rushia laughed at that, happy and light, and pulled Marine in for another long, gentle kiss.

Later that night, after hours of talking and touching and drinking in every tiny detail of each other, Rushia would lie in bed - Marine flush against her back, her arms wrapped lovingly around her waist and their legs tangled together - and she would bring her fingers to the inside of her left wrist as she had done so many times before. This time, however, it wouldn't make her feel that cold, sharp loneliness she was so familiar with. Instead, she would feel love bloom from within her chest, an overwhelming feeling of belonging. Marine's pulse would be slow, but undeniably there, as Rushia moves to press a gentle kiss to her newfound lover's lips, featherlight, but filled with all of the feelings she didn't have the words to say. Marine would kiss her back, sweet and slow, everything Rushia had been longing for for so long.

As their bodies and souls meld, years of loneliness giving away to a new, exciting feeling of love and belonging, Uruha Rushia realises that she is no longer alone, and she never will be again.

**Author's Note:**

> skhkjgh sorry i was in the mood to write something sappy and i love marirushi v much
> 
> title taken from le velo pour deux by the brobecks.
> 
> thank u for reading !!


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